Scott Harris Custom Carpentry & General Contractor

home repair work

Another contractor noticed problems with the work, which prompted me to call an inspector. I stopped the job when the home inspector advised the work being done was defective and would need to be removed. For example, Gorilla Glue was used instead of a proper bonding agent. This oozed out and dammed up the gutters. Through-holes in the downspouts were too small and off center so they couldn't be placed properly, and the gutters were non-functional. It cost over $15,000 to have the work redone, plus the initial $6,000 I paid to Scott Harris for the work.

This is a contractor horror story on all levels.  
The job was never completed by the contractor.  The contractor engaged in deceptive practices and deceived me about securing a permit.  Not only did he abandon the job, he refused to refund the money.
Thinking perhaps I could get another contractor to pick up on the work he did I discovered that not only did he not secure a permit he failed to build the project to code.  The work was done so poorly and out of compliance that more than three contractors refused to deal with it.  Through a professional aquaintance I found some in kind enough and professional enough to take it on.
What we learned, the work was wildly out of code.  Due to the lack of proper permitting the permitting cost me more to do that normal and required additional documentation.  The code issues involved the framing, the stairs, the roof, the connection to the house.
I won't go on but I strongly recommend if you think about using this contractor to check references including myself.  I have great documentation on how poorly and unprofessionally this was done.  I will be pursuing this contractor legally to reclaim all of my costs and additional damages created by his work which included interior flooding, squirrel infestation, and frozen pipes.
The contractor may indicate that I fired him.  I did when I learned he had deceived me.  I also did offer under certain conditions to bring him back on the job if he secured permits, he chose not to do that.

Scott and his crew demolished a rotted portion of our old deck and built a beautiful new mahogany deck.  Our deck plan was somewhat unique but Scott's carpenters handled it with aplomb and professionalism.

The work was messy.

I am a Realtor and have used many contractors in past projects on my properties and for my client's properties.  Found Scott at the TOP for Professionalism, Reasonable pricing, Finishing on time and most of all QUALITY. Our Insurance required higher porches on our 3 Family and we were left with a very tight time frame. Scott chose to use white against our light gray vinyl siding that matched our window and post trims making the added height a border that blends in and is now just part of the original house.  Work is superb and above and beyond the result expected.  Finished work added style to our property which always helps property value.

good

Scott was wonderful, very quick to respond to any questions etc. Very  professional, 3 day job, everything was clean and neat after each time he left. Let us know when he was leaving and returning. Great communication!!

Couldn't have gone better. Scott was punctual, extremely polite and accomodating. He brought a second man with him to help. He picked up the lumber necessary to complete the project, something that he was not required to do but volunteered to do nonetheless. The stairs he built are well-constructed and he modified their design from the old steps based on my request for less high, wider steps. Upon completing the project, he cleaned up and offered to take the lumber from the old steps to the dump, an offer I took him up on since it saved me having to cart the lumber to the dump myself. Top-shelf job! I highly recommend Scott.

I put most of the information about how my experience went in the "services performed" area -- please read that for the full story.  Overall I was SUPER pleased with the work and the price for the projects I had done.  I was so happy that I am working with Scott to scope out additional projects for our house (custom built in entertainment hutch for the family room, a shed for the back yard, and possible plans to finish our walk up attic space).
We moved to MA from Colorado and had an excellent carpenter there who did many projects for us.  I am happy to find another great carpenter here!

Scott Harris gave a fair estimate and price. Scott was very cooperative
in discussing the job at hand and  offered  suggesstions, giving thought
to the big picture.  He (and his son assistant) were very helpful in
moving furniture that could not normally be moved out of a small
basement room. We would certainly hire him again for any future hardwood
flooring needed.

Overall I was impressed with Scott's professionalism. He was punctual, articulate and accommodating.

1. Removing the old deck: They worked very hard to demolish a very large and seriously rotten deck. They carried the old timbers and decking uphill to the front yard and the dumpster. A tough job and they did it very well. They even removed the old concrete footings.

2. Constructing the new deck: They quickly set up the frame, but the work was disrupted by a blizzard that dumped 2 feet of snow on the construction site. They shoveled the snow and resumed construction. Winter conditions required extra time for the curing of the new concrete footings. The railings on the deck were of particular concern to me because the view is of a lake. The design allows a very good view of the lake and meets code for railings.

3. New gutter: The water from the roof creates a serious problem by dripping large amounts of rain and melting snow on the deck, creating icy conditions and water coming into the porch. Scott Harris put up a new, large gutter that is handling the water and diverting it away from the deck and house.

From start to finish our experience with Scott was great. He was always on time from the very first visit to give us an estimate. He started and finished the job when he said he would. At every step he let us know what he was doing and why he was building things in a certain way. He always took the time to answer our questions and worked with us to get the stairs just how we wanted them. He was always respectful of keeping our home clean too. When he was done, we were left with a beautiful new staircase. We couldn't be happier and would recommend him to any of our friends.

It went very well.
We were concerned about having to replace the entire rail system but Scott was able to dismantle the existing rail system, the repair the deck, and rehang the railing.
This saved us a bundle and given the deck was only 6 years old, we were in no mood to spend more than necessary.
Scott was very professional. We picked a start date and he and his assistant kept to the schedule and completed the work on time.
Scott replaced more of the original mahogany then planned but did not charge more for the added materials.

They didn't show up the first day that they were scheduled to begin work.  Then, they worked for a few days and disappeared for a while to work on another job.  Scott Harris requested full payment for half of the work done.  I withheld a certain amount as he had not completed the tasks he was supposed to. After that, his crew packed up everything and did not return, despite numerous e-mails and phone calls (which were not returned).  After several months of no response, I contacted an attorney who sent out a 93A letter on November 14, 2011, which was ignored by Mr. Harris.  A follow-up letter sent by  my attorney shortly thereafter was also ignored.  I am extremely disappointed and upset over the lack of professionalism and respect on the part of Mr. Harris, and the fact that I paid a considerable amount of money for a job that was not completed.  It's too bad that, in this day and age, that contractors like this continue to get away with bilking consumers.

I should add that I had to hire another contractor to finish the work that Mr. Harris didn't do, as well as fix mistakes that his crew made.  I ended up having to pay much more than I had budgeted for, as a result. Not a good experience.

Scott Harris cannot be trusted.

In 2009 we paid him a deposit on a contract to replace the roof at our house.  He did not show up to do the work on the date as promised.  After giving several excuses and changing the date several times, he disappeared altogether, not answering his telephone or e-mail.  We found out that there were other customers from whom he took deposits as well.

He contacted us again in 2010 and gave us sob story about how he had family issues and had to go to Florida for a while.  We made the mistake of believing the story and rather than asking for the deposit back, gave him another chance to do the job.

At the time the house was rented out so we were not there to supervise the work.  He replaced the roof but the work was sub-par.  He did not put in the soffit vents as stipulated in the contract.  There were roofing materials all over the yard.  Some of them went down the downspouts and clogged them.

We discovered leaks in 2011.  We contacted Scott to ask him to come and fix them.  Twice he did not show up on the time promised and stopped answering his phone.  When we finally approached him at his residence, he promised to come but again failed to show up.  We finally found a professional roofer to do the repair who said that the roof vents were installed incorrectly.

ok

Scott's work was outstanding. We've dealt with a lot of contractors. Scott's carpentry is exceptional and his analysis of the underlying structural problems involved in both jobs went to the core of the problems. In terms of the rot, shoring up the structure of the barn, and dealing with a tricky roof configuration to prevent ice build-up, Scott was very clear about what needed to be done and why. In no case did this require costly add-ons - he simply did the work efficiently and right. Scott is a pleasure to deal with - very friendly and direct and accommodating. His prices are very reasonable and he works with excellent sub-contractors, including electrician, tiler, and painters. At times he can be difficult to reach but I still gave an A for punctuality and responsiveness because when he said he'd be there, he was always on time, and "responsiveness" I interpret as a willingness to hear our concerns and respond to them. He also had a number of creative suggestions that improved the overall solution to the barn. We ordered the barn doors from a company in Pennsylvania - Scott installed them.  All went very smoothly, Scott is great to work with, and we strongly recommend him.

He did a good job.  He was responsive.

Overall the results were quite good.  Scott and his assistant replaced all the boards with Azek and built the soffit box in my closet.   The worksmanship was very good.  His price was competitive.  Also, he came out after the major work was completed and addressed my punch list point by point.  The only area for improvement from my perspective would be to ensure that he communicates more actively with the homeowner.  In our case his work was interrupted by an emergency jobs that he took for someone he had done previous work for and the impending delays were a little frustrating to my wife.  I left him messages and it took him a few days to get back to me (he was clearly busy with work during the time he did the repairs at my house).  Fortunately, the project was succesfully completed and I am very satisfied with the results.  I would use Scott again for similar work.

We had a little bit of confusion, but it was fine.

Still waiting for the final inspection to be completed and the work began 9 months ago.  In addition to the porch work, Scott agreed to fix a small cosmetic repair on our front steps that has still not been completed- in addition to the fact that the roof on our porch now dips (where is didn't prior to Scott beginning the work- and we have pictures to prove it).  The railings are not up to current code.  We had wanted to maintain the historical appeal of our original railings and Scott assured us that this would be possible.  Over these many months I have contacted Scott countless times to try to bring the project to closure.  I have offered to split the cost of finishing work.  He has been nearly impossible to get in touch with (even Angie's list had a hard time reaching him).  and on the most recent occasion when he indicated a time he could come to the house- he was a no show.  The project is at a complete standstill with an open permit and Scott is unwilling to work with me to reach a resolution. He continues to state the the inspector has been delaying the process and that the inspector previously told him the work had passed.  I was able to reach the inspector on my first try and he came out the house that same week.  He arrived when he said he would and was exceptionally reasonable.  I have documented all of my conversations with Scott via email.  I took pictures of the house prior to him beginning the work and I recommend to anyone considering his services to do the same.

I called Scott because I was having significant problems with ice dams and roof leaking. He was booked for the day, but promised to come when he was done with his previously scheduled clients.  At a time others were price gouging, he did not. He returned my phone call the same day, was courteous, and told me when he would be available. He arrived when he said he would, after letting me know he was on his way. He and his crew worked quickly and efficiently. I was very happy with his service, and am considering him for roof repairs that I intend to have done this summer. I would recommend Scott to others.

This whole project has been a breeze, from start to finish! He responded to my initial inquiry immediately, came to do the estimate on time, was personable, friendly and helpful in discussing my options for decking materials; he came by again with samples; he wrote a clear contract and his price was extremely reasonable (I had one other quote which was higher.) Scott was able to start the job a week earlier than planned, which was great for me. And the deck looks terrific! I'm so glad I used the product he recommended. I plan to use Scott again for another inside project later this year.